The terms/acronyms “woke,” “DEI,” and “CRT” are used in a derogatory way, interchangeably, as a coded language to signify or designate a Black person as either Black or the N-word. Political conservatives use these frequently. They’re not hiding their vitriol for any backlash against whiteness, white supremacy, and racial capitalism. They’re highlighting it and specifically, perpetuating harm done to Black people.
Their narrative shaping unfortunately changes not only the use of these but also the definition of these within mainstream conversation, which shapes how people view namely DEI initiatives. Conservatives cannot do this alone. Mass media platforms play a major role in executing the agenda of demonizing the work of Black activists, Black freedom fighters, and advocates of racial justice across all spectrums of views.
New stories on DEI and previous stories or reports on CRT, even Black history teaching, land on the side of subversion or prevention. The news tends to center on those who have an issue with DEI and CRT—in other words, white people who have a problem with Black people who call out whiteness and white supremacy. Most stories surround corporations and universities ridding DEI departments and staff due to conservative pressure. Rarely is the anti-Black racism that informs the backlash discussed.
Most stories surround politicians like Ron DeSantis creating laws to attack CRT and “wokeness.” Few articles name DeSantis, and others like him, a racist or race-baiter. Few stories speak to the truth that more people who work, regardless of gender, age, or race believe that DEI is a good thing in the workplace.
As a result, DEI has come to stand for “didn’t earn it.” Policymakers have blamed DEI for the bridge collapse in Baltimore as others have rendered DEI a safety issue where airplane pilots are concerned. DEI has joined CRT and wokeness as boogeymen and designators of Blackness. These serve as the new N-word and Black people are aware; we’ve made jokes about it on the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
But all jokes aside, there’s nothing funny about white folks calling us the N-word using coded language, on social media, on news reports, or anywhere at all. It’s harmful and the harm displays the systemic nature of racism. Some would say that individuals muttering these things are examples of one person’s racism. The reality is that those individuals tend to be policymakers or corporate executives, or those with ties and influence with policymakers and corporate executives.
The result is laws and policies that effectively harm Black people and other persons of color. The result is Black history not being taught, Black people being fired from jobs, failing to be hired for jobs, Black people not being accepted into universities, and even HBCUs being targeted. How are conservatives doing so? By using the same playbook they have in the past to scare America away from racial justice; that is the Southern Strategy. Rather than say the N-word, you say “DEI,” “CRT,” or “woke.”
Unfortunately, but not surprisingly, it’s working.
I get the jokes, but this is no laughing matter. We must continue to fight these policy changes, but we must also ensure that media balance their coverage: speak more about the impact of implementing DEI initiatives and teaching Black history to all students. It’s bad enough that media portrayals of Black folks are sketchy at best; sadly, the same is happening across the board where truth is concerned.
We [educators] must work to ensure that anti-Black racists don’t have the final word, narrative, or definition for terms, phrases, and acronyms meant to address systemic racism in employment, public schooling, and even in health care, housing, and any other thing you can think of where Black people, and other people of color, are withheld access from.
For educators, that means we do what we do: educate. We must use training, thought leadership, and other mechanisms to ensure that school buildings as well as district offices aren’t places of anti-Black or race-based ignorance. It has less to do with educating white people and more to do with being a protector of Black children.
Because like it or not, without our advocacy, Black children might be buried by systemic racism… they might even be called a “DEI.”
